I read this book awhile ago, but never got a chance to write the review until now. I really enjoyed the characterization in this book. I really appreciated how different Petrona and Chula were, and especially their age differences, but how both were incredibly vivid, realistic characters, both of whom I grew to love and appreciate. Add to that a rich, complex setting, and this makes a solid read, even with a weaker plot linking it all together.

The writing in this book is beautiful and the plot kept me interested from beginning to end. Then, when I learned that many of the events in the book are based off of the author’s real experiences, it made the impact that much more powerful.

This was a beautifully written novel that showed the divide between a wealthy family in Colombia and their mysterious live-in maid. The story really immerses you into the detailed scenes. My one critique was that the narration of the child didn't feel very believable. I haven't ever met a child quite that eloquent!

I had a very hard time getting in to this book. I'd read it, then put it down, then try a second or third time. It just wasn't of interest to me. Sorry.

Gripping and absorbing premise. I loved seeing the comparison to Isabelle Allende, though upon reading, not sure I'd agree. Interesting choice for the POV character.

I read this some time ago but must have not sent the review. Its a very luscious book that I can still remember a year later. Highly, highly recommend and I hope to see more from this author. Such a good book.

Rich, evocative prose serves to enamor the reader of the two exquisitely developed characters caught in their own battle for self-recognition and survival.

"When there's a tempest, it comes down on all sides equally."

Where the war on drugs in the United States led to violence, in Columbia, the violence was exponentially worse. The story is told in retrospect after the Santiago family escapes Columbia and is granted asylum in the United States. The story is told in alternating chapters by Chula, the Santiagos' oldest daughter, and Petrona Sanchez, a young girl who worked for the family. The two stories tell alternating versions of Columbia. The Santiagos live ina more affluent side of a town in Bogota. Petrona lives near Boyaca referred to as the Invasion. As the family watches the military fight rebels and narcos, Petrona is on the front lines of the drug war. As her family slips into poverty, Petrona must do increasingly dangerous things to keep both families safe. The narration from Chula is completely oblivious of this situation. She sees Pablo Escobar as some boogieman. Eventually, everything comes to a head.

For the impoverished, the Narco war hits them right away. For the more affluent, its some distant happening. When Petrona becomes increasingly desperate, it puts her family and Chula's family in dangers. Even though the tempest falls, it does not fall equally. Even as Senora Alma utters those words, the people of the Invasion laugh at it. The destruction wrought to those in the rural areas, where the urban areas are mildly impacted. Pablo Escobar is seven seen as a folk hero to those who get no justice from the government. A betrayal leads to the Santiagos to request asylum and flee to the United States. This novel, with several autobiographical parts, brings the war on drugs home to the Unite States. It is entertainment to many, but the damaged creeps in to impact everyone, not equally but everyone.

Doubleday Books and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of Fruit of the Drunken Tree. I was under no obligation to review this book and my opinion is freely given.

Fruit of the Drunken Tree takes place during the turmoil and unrest of life in Colombia during the 1990's. Narrated by two girls: Chula, a young girl living in a gated community in Bogotá and Patrona, a thirteen year old girl turned maid for the family. From the guerrilla-occupied slum, Patrona hopes that working for the family can help her to provide for her family without having to resort to desperate measures. Will the choices they both make have unintended consequences for them both?

Inspired by the life of the author, Ingrid Rojas Contreras, the novel has historical references that allow the time period to come to life. There were parts of the novel that I found particularly interesting, emotionally charged and historically significant. The problem is that the author split the perspective between two unreliable narrators: a young girl, whose view of life in Colombia is seen through childlike eyes, and a teenager, whose own desperation leads her to hide the truth even from herself. Additionally, the story does not unfold naturally, with the author subtly telling what happens to the two girls without really coming out and saying it bluntly. The back and forth between perspectives, as well as the passage of time, leads the story astray. Overall, the author does a good job of capturing the tumultuous time period, but the fictional aspects of the story hold the book back.

a satisfying work of magical realism and a deeply moving coming of age story giving readers a fascinating glimpse into South American culture

Fruit of the Drunken Tree by Ingrid Rojas Contreras is the story of a young girl, Chula, and her family living in Columbia, along with their maid, Petrona. The story of their lives living in a very turbulent Columbia during the time of drug lord, Pablo Escobar and constant guerrilla terror is told in the perspectives of Chula and Petrona. Chula and her family live in a home in a gated community, Chula’s Father has a job, she goes to school, she has a supportive mother and sister. Petrona has lost her father and many of her brothers. She is the sole supporter for her family who live in poverty and includes a sick mother and several young siblings. Through the two perspectives we see how the lives of those with money and those in poverty were different and yet also the same during difficult circumstances such as car bombings, recruitments to gangs or guerrilla organizations, murders, kidnappings and betrayals.

For me the setting of Columbia was a huge part of this book. There was much I learned about Columbia and I did more research on Columbia while reading this book. The events spoken of in the book are actual events. The author grew up in Columbia and experienced many of the things spoken of and I think that is what made so many of the details of Columbia and these events seem so real to me. The writing was descriptive enough for me to get a complete picture but not so descriptive that the characters became lost.

I really loved the character of Chula and as the story of her life unfolds we see how Columbia not only made her into the person she is by the end of the story but we understand why that is. I did sometimes struggle with the differences in how Petrona was portrayed in Chula’s narration and then when Petrona narrated. She didn’t always seem like the same person but that might have been done on purpose to show that Chula did not know everything about the family maid.

I really enjoyed this book about fear, love, guilt, and survival. It helped me to understand people who live in a dangerous country and the things that they go through every day.

Based on the author’s real-life experiences, this book explores the lives of two young girls living in Pablo Escobar’s Colombia. The cover alone is beautiful, but what is inside is even more so! This story will captivate all readers & take you on an emotional journey as you become attached to every character.

This gorgeously written, but haunting, novel is set in Colombia in the late 1980s - right when the nation was caught up in guerilla warfare and the terrifying reign of drug kingpin, Pablo Escobar. The violence and unknowable danger seep into every citizen's daily life, including (and sometimes most of all) into the children who live there. I didn't realize until I read the author's note at the end that this novel was actually semi-autobiographical. (I think I might have had a stronger connection to the characters had I known this ahead of time.) The story is told in two POVs: Chula, a young child who still views the world with a magical tint, and Petrona, a teenage maid who works for Chula's family. Seeing some events from both perspectives created a dual storytelling that felt inventive and fresh to me. Although it is sometimes difficult to read novels set in these oppressive and dark environments, using Chula's childlike innocence to describe her country and what is happening to it creates a thread of honesty (with a dash of magical realism) that's really moving. Contreras' writing is really impressive - her powerful prose and strong female characters will stick with me for a while to come.

What would living in Columbia feel like during the days of Pablo Escobar? Ingrid Rojas Contreras allows readers to see both: the rich families of the gated communities and those coming from the slums to work at their houses as maids. The story is told through the eyes of two young characters: Chula and the maid in her house: Petrona. We hear the majority of events through Chula’s perspective (accurate to society).

The first half of the book establishes the setting. It was at times hard to continue, for even though new characters were introduced, the plot didn’t sufficiently thicken to keep me longing for more. I am very glad that I persisted through, because when things go awry, everything is turned on its head. Unfathomable sacrifices are made left and right, and a surprising check of privilege brings my favorite quote from the book:


“When I had been in danger, Petrona had chosen me over herself. I was not in danger and now I was choosing myself over Petrona. My body was heavy with this knowing as we hurried down the hill.”

Despite Petronas earlier intervention which potentially saved Chula from death, she is unable to even figure out a way in which to help Petrona, let alone carry it out.

Despite the hard time I had finishing the book, I enjoyed the ending. It is by no means a “and they lived happily ever after” kind of ending, but it shows that the survivors have immense resilience. The Author’s note (two pages in the ARC version I read) completely transformed the entire book for me. If you are willing to embark on adventure, and aren’t worried if it may at times feel tedious, I can warmly recommend this book.

First of all, the writing was beautiful. I felt like I was there with the characters, completely immersed in Colombian culture. However, there was a disconnect for me. I didn’t really get into the book until the 200 page mark (and the book is just over 300 pages). It was a slow read, and at times it felt like a chore to pick up. However, the last one hundred pages were absolutely breathtaking and well worth the wait.

The vibrant cover of Fruit of the Drunken Tree by Ingrid Rojas Contreras gives no hint of the heartbreak and violence that lies in this story of two girls forced to grow up way too soon by a conflict that they do not understand. Set in a turbulent Bogota, Colombia, this book is based on an imagining of what did not but could have happened in the author's own life. The book is slow reading, but the characters are heartbreaking.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2019/04/fruit-of-drunken-tree.html

Reviewed for NetGalley.

Unfortunately, I was unable to get into this title. It just wasn't a good fit for me. Thanks so much for the opportunity to read this title. I will not be posting a review online, in order not to skew the ratings.

4.5 *s. I loved that this novel dealt with a history that I know little about. It is set in Columbia besieged by violence and kidnappings when drug lord Pablo Escobar was very powerful. The novel alternates between the voices of 7 year old Chula and the maid for her family Petrona. I found this novel fascinating and it resonated even more when discovering at the end that some of the novel was based on the author's experiences.

I wasn't expecting to cry during this book, but it created so many emotions in me. I think this book is so important for people to read, especially in today's America. I work as a teacher in a low income, predominately Hispanic, area. I've heard stories about immigrants, what happens in South America, but only surface level things. Hearing about Pablo Escobar's Colombia from the perspective of a child was more than I ever could have expected. This story was so beautifully written and gave you different perspectives of what was going on during that time. I felt connected with Chulla, and even Petrona, throughout the whole story, and found myself crying for their happiest and saddest moments. I highly recommend this book to anyone and am so happy that I received it for free through Netgalley. I liked that the book gave me children having fun in random moments, but also diving deep into how easily drugs and paramilitary/guerrilla groups can tear apart a family.

What a vividly painted, wonderful and painful look into Colombia and the tumult of the late 80s/early 90s. Chula and Petrona are as complex characters as I've read in quite some time.